Engaging the Earl by Diana Quincy Read Free Book Online Page B

turned to follow the dog, castigating herself for allowing this man who had deserted her to have any impact on her at all. “I mustn’t let Vera escape again. We might find her assaulting another unsuspecting admirer of nature.”
    He followed. “Are you alone?” He looked around as they strolled, spotting her maid following at a distance. “Good lord, is that Fanny?”
    “It is indeed.” For some reason, it pleased her that he had remembered her maid. Fanny was part of their shared past.
    “Well, I’ll be.” He squinted to get a better look at the dark-clad woman. “From the disagreeable expression on her face, I gather I’m still not a great favorite of hers.”
    “Fanny sees herself as the guardian of my reputation. And you are the only gentleman who has ever tempted her mistress to misbehave.”
    “Is that so?” Probing eyes fixed on her face. “Your Lord Sinclair doesn’t provoke you to naughtiness?”
    Her cheeks grew hot. No. No one has ever had the power to provoke me but you.
    A shout pierced the air. “I say, you there, is that a dog? Canines are not allowed in Kensington Gardens.”
    She looked back to where three gentlemen of middle age pointed in their direction. “Oh no.”
    “Is that so?” He followed her gaze. “Are dogs not allowed here?”
    She averted her eyes. “It might be so.”
    His brows rose. “Are you breaking the rules?”
    “It’s a silly rule and I just wanted some privacy and quiet for my walk.”
    “I’ll take that as a yes.”
    She looked back at the approaching men. “Perhaps if we ignore them—”
    The man was gesturing wildly now toward his servants. “You, go get the constable.” Pointing to another servant, he yelled, “You, capture that canine.”
    Turning to face them, Edward squared his shoulders, his face hardening. “Don’t worry. I won’t let them take your animal.”
    A shiver of consciousness swept through her. On the battlefield, commanding an army, he must have appeared much as he did now: the lean lines of his body tense with anticipation, his emerald eyes dark and stormy, the hollows in his cheeks made more pronounced by his braced jaw and the fierce set of his features.
    She put a staying hand on his forearm, surprised by the hard turn of warm muscle apparent beneath his jacket. “Let us away from here.” She tugged at his jacket. “I cannot be caught here with you and Vera. The gossips would have a field day.”
    An arrogant rise of his brow. “Are you suggesting that we run rather than face them?”
    She nodded with vigor, still pulling at him. “That is exactly what I am suggesting. The rags love to write about me. And you are a new earl, a war hero. If we are discovered, it will be in all of the papers. Mama will have an apoplectic fit.”
    He appeared reluctant at first, his planted feet not budging. “Please, Edward,” she pleaded, yanking on his sleeve more vigorously.
    His stern expression shifted, as though he’d reached a decision. “Vera, come!” Grabbing Kat’s hand, encasing it in his large, firm grasp, they made a run for it.
    The dog yapped, cavorting alongside, clearly enjoying the game. Kat raced with Edward as they ducked into the wood line, her heart pounding and her blood soaring in a way that made her feel like a carefree girl again. When her hat snagged on a branch and swept it off her head, tousling her hair, she wanted to laugh. She had no idea how long they ran, but finally, out of breath, they spun around the trunk of a large tree in the wooded area.
    Peering in the direction they’d just come from, Edward ran a hand over his close-cropped hair. “I think we’ve lost them.”
    Kat bent over, panting, trying to ease a cramp in her side. “Oh my, I can’t remember the last time I’ve run like that.”
    “Are you well?” Concerned tinged his question.
    She dropped to the ground, still trying to catch her breath. “I’m wonderful,” she said between laughing gasps. “That was marvelous! We showed